Luka Bloom's Innocence

Luka Bloom's new CD Innocence has been getting a work out in my iTunes the past couple weeks. I'm listening to it right this minute, as a matter of fact. And the more I listen to it, the more I love it and the more I'm excited that we have such an amazing artist coming to the Kansas City Irish Fest this year. The new CD is understated, and quiet in places to the point where you might almost miss the power that is there in the lyrics, guitar and Bloom's rich voice. He says of the new record: "The whole story of this album is interesting and different. Life is an endless stream of challenges, and for this singer, the most important ingredient to hang on to is our innocence and wonder at the world". That sense of wonder is on display all over this album, with songs about such simple joys as the coming of Spring, a young girl's trip to the beach with her parents, and summer sunshine.

On Innocence, he moves effortlessly from songs that display the sense of humor that is often seen in a Luka Bloom penned lyric (Doing The Best I Can), to a simple, beautiful instrumental (Peace On Earth), to a really haunting version of his well known famine immigration ballad City Of Chicago. He tells a story of modern immigration into Ireland in No Matter Where You Go, There You Are. No stranger to political statements, he takes on The Iraq War in the beautiful I Am Not At War. No stranger to the music of the big world, he won't allow himself to be pigeoned-holed into an "Irish" sound. Listen to Gypsy Music and Venus and you'll see what I mean. And Bloom's song June reminds me of Van Morrison's classic Sweet Thing, and that can't be bad.

This is one of those too rare records, for me anyway, that doesn't have a weak spot on it. Luka Bloom is on the Boulevard Pub Stage at 7:30 on Saturday, September 2. We are lucky people.